When we receive the gift of salvation, we are no longer slaves to our three great enemies—the flesh, the world, and the devil. Our soul and spirit have been freed from the tentacles of death, and the chains of the slave master of sin have no power over us. But so many times—we willingly go back to those chains.
What do I mean?
When we are born again, God’s righteous nature inhabits our soul and spirit; but our flesh is still hell-bent on sinning. When we succumb to the flesh, we divest ourselves of the freedom we have in Christ to live according to the glorious life He offers us. Paul described this internal battle:
“For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being.”
Romans 7:18-22
When we are born again, our flesh, which is still corrupt, wars against our redeemed inner man.
The old ways of sin are NOT what our “inner man” really wants. Our “inner man”—is our regenerated soul and spirit. When we habitually begin to forsake the deceptive ways of the flesh, we experience the fullness of the AMAZING regenerated person we were created to be. We begin to realize our great potential—and we desire to live in it. Someday, when our body dies, we will have ultimate victory; however, living a victorious life on earth is only accomplished by constantly strengthening our inner man. We do this by building our relationship with God.
Each day, we must choose between serving God or serving our flesh because—we WILL serve one or the other.
This internal battle is REAL—but the difference is, when we are born again—we’re no longer helpless to fight against it. Jesus conquered sin and gave us His Spirit; and thus, we have a CHOICE about whether to serve HIM or—the masters of misery.
The Good Shepherd frees us to live a glorious life so—we NEVER have to go back to the chains!
We would love to hear your thoughts about this devotional. Did God speak to you or challenge your daily walk with him? Or is there a topic that you would like Kimberly to cover or expound on? Please share with us in the comments below.
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One Response
We must build our relationships with God and strengthen our “inner man” to accomplish having your life’s treasures become eternal in this life and in the next life thereafter. Thank you Kimberly Faith.Amen!!Love,Lehualeilani.